An Alphabet Of Quadrupeds Part 4

[Ill.u.s.tration: KOODOO.]

THE KOODOO.

The Koodoo combines many of the characteristics of the sheep, ox, and antelope. He is a large and beautiful animal, a native of the woodlands of Caffraria, the male standing four feet high, and from the insertion of the tail to the muzzle measuring about eight. The horns rise perpendicularly in large spiral whorls, three feet nine inches in length; a bristling of black hairs runs along the ridge of the neck, and a line of the same color hangs from the dewlap: the general color is brown, fading into grey, with a dorsal stripe of white, and stripes of the same color behind the shoulders and across the back.

They are fleet but can not run long.

More nearly allied to the deer, from which they are distinguished by their horns being permanent and without antlers, but marked with circular elevated rings, which increase, in size with their growth and years, one or two species alone exhibit a short ramification.

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[Ill.u.s.tration: MOUFFLON.]

THE MOUFFLON.

This is a sort of sheep living wild on the mountains of Corsica and Sardinia; a similar species is also scattered over European Turkey and some of the islands of the Archipelago. They are about the ordinary size of sheep, and breed with the domestic races. The head is long, with the muzzle compressed, the nose somewhat raised, and the forehead swollen; the horns of the male (the female being without) are large, long, and triangular, bending backward like a half circle, attenuated from the base to the tip, which is obtuse; the body is large and muscular, the tail short, and bare on the inside; the legs are pretty long, and the hoofs short.

They wander in flocks of about a hundred, led by some old and courageous male. Their habits are like those of our own sheep, docile and gentle, though sometimes an amorous or a churlish old ram will b.u.t.t down a child, a woman, or a man, who may happen to stand in his road, when the fit is upon him.

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[Ill.u.s.tration: RED DEER.]

THE RED DEER.

The European Stag, or Red Deer, is a fine looking animal, the tallest of the deer kind. The pride of the north, he delights in the highest mountains and the thickest forests, and is famed for long life, though the natural term of his existence be often exaggerated, and which, when exposed to human observation, he has never yet been accurately known to reach. He comes to full growth at five years, when his horns send out as many antlers, and he is called a hart, and the female a hind.

Every year the male sheds his horns, and conscious of his temporary weakness, hides himself till his new ones are hardened. His color, as his name imports, is a bright reddish-brown, of a darker shade near the belly, which is white. When fatigued in the chase, he takes the water if near, and will cross with ease considerable and rapid streams; when wounded or taken, he sheds tears like a child; but though timid, when at bay he sometimes takes ample vengeance upon the hounds before he is subdued.

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[Ill.u.s.tration: LION.]

THE LION.

The African Lion, now driven from the coast, is scattered over the interior. He measures from seven to nine feet in length, with a tail about four, tufted at the point; the height at the shoulder from three to five; but when he is newly whelped, his size does not exceed that of a puppy dog, and it requires four, or according to some writers, six years, till he attains his full stature. He lives to a great but uncertain age; one in the Tower reached upwards of seventy years.

There are three varieties described; one of a deep yellowish brown; the other of a lighter shade: and the Cape Lion, of which the mane is nearly black. The appearance of the lion, from which he has derived the t.i.tle of the king of beasts, is majestic when at rest, but terrible when roused. He has a broad face, surrounded with long s.h.a.ggy hair, and a flowing mane, increasing in length as his years advance, adorns his neck.

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[Ill.u.s.tration: LLAMA.]

THE LLAMA.

The Llama of the New are a.n.a.logous to the camel of the Old World, but smaller in size, being only about four feet four inches high at the shoulder. The dromedary is from five to seven. It is a native of the mountainous regions of South America. It has cloven hoofs, adapted for aiding its progress in hilly districts. It has no hunch on the back, but has one on the breast. Its color is a greyish-white, spotted. It is equally abstemious in its habits with the camel, and will travel four or even five days without seeking repose; but like the camel, it will not be forced to carry more or move faster than it chooses and will rather kill itself, by striking its head on the ground, than be driven forward by harshness or blows. In a wild state it is gregarious, but is easily domesticated, and is still used as a beast of burden.

[Ill.u.s.tration]